TOWER GROVE — Now that he’s free from a season spent neck deep and road-tested with the Kansas City Royals, former Cardinal TV stalwart Joel Goelberg has his shoulder in a sling — long story — and plenty of free time. That got him thinking.

When the Cardinals signed Kyle Lohse to a four-year, $41-million deal, complete with a no-trade claus, the contract was viewed as a descendant of Carlos Silva’s, another step in the evolutionary chain of free-agent pitchers. Goldie saw something beyond Silva, he saw the reflection of a pitcher he knows well, and, in a first for Bird Land, he decided to offer up his take on Lohse’s contract and his knowledge about the pitcher it reminded him of.

Goldberg’s take begins with quite a hook.

A Postcard from the Kansas City bureau:

Guys,

I am one year removed from daily Cardinals baseball, but Lohse’s new contract, and his 2008 stats reminded me of a guy I cover every day:

……………. Age … W-L … GS … IP … ERA … K/BB … K/9 … BB/9 … HR/9
Pitcher 1 … *29 … 15-6 … 33 … 200.0 … 3.78 … 2.4 … 5.4 … 2.2 … .81
Pitcher 2 … *29 … 14-11… 34 … 210.3 … 3.98 …2.5 … 7.8 … 3.1 … .81

*2009 opening day age

Pitcher #1 is obviously Lohse. I noticed the striking similarities to pitcher #2, Gil Meche, the other day and sent them to Derrick. I cover Gil every day now, but was in STL working for FSN Midwest when Meche got his he deal a couple of years ago, and I remember people across the country ripping the Royals for driving up the market. Here are both contracts, as I understand them, and DG may be able to correct or add to them:

Contracts

Lohse 4Yr-41M thru 2012 ‘09: $7.125M ‘10: $8.875M ‘11: $11.875M ‘12: $11.875M

Meche 5yr-55M thru 2011 ‘09 $11M, ‘10: $12M ‘11: $12M

Did Meche’s huge deal lead to the contracts like Silva’s? Perhaps, and Seattle needs to deal with that now but if the pitcher performs as expected, it is not a bad deal. In today’s market. Meche has gone back-to-back years of 34 starts and 200 plus IP and the Royals need to spend ace or #2 money on a number three pitcher because guys aren’t lining up to come to a team that has struggled for years (not all that different than what Detroit had to do prior to its World Series run). Meche has an ace mentality when he takes the ball, and very consistent stuff, although his numbers were rough the first month. His leadership skills among pitchers reminds me of Carp or DK. I think these are good deals for both teams, but you never know until you see if a team gets its money’s worth. The Royals are on their way. Hopefully the Cardinals will be, too. Any thoughts?

See you during interleague play.

Joel Goldberg/FSN Kansas City

***

To Goldberg’s letter, I can only add that the conundrum of these contracts is how much salary the two pitchers make in the final years. In 2011, when Lohse is making nearly $12 million, is he going to be the team’s No. 2 pitcher? He is going to the be the Cardinals’ ace? Or, are the Cardinals going to be paying $12 million for a No. 4 pitcher. Lohse’s age and his track record say that won’t be the case, that he’s a sturdy top-three pitcher and will be through the length of the contract. But can Seattle count on Silva to be that? Teams paint themselves into a tight corner when they set up a contract to pay a guy his biggest salary when he’s least reliable.

***

Goldberg frequents the Bird Land page on Facebook, and comments about his letter can also be posted there, where there are already a few topics on the message board. … Also, the newspaper has suggested its reporters go Twitter. Got a page going there too — search, DGOOLD — and, at the least, check out the wallpaper on that page. It’s a nostalgic view of a familiar place. … Will be back after lunchtime with today’s What If: What If Adam Wainwright had been healthy all season?

-30-